Record number of underclassmen beefing up 2014 draft

Green Bay - The deadline for underclassmen to declare for the 2014 NFL draft was Wednesday and according to numerous websites who track early entries the number is somewhere between 93 and 96, which would blow away the previous record of 73 set last season.

According to one NFL personnel executive, the addition of the underclassmen makes this draft "very deep" and would allow a team like the Packers, picking at No. 21 in the first round, to be able to choose from several quality players when its selection rolls around.

The NFL will officially announce the names of those who were granted early eligibility sometime in the next couple of days.

However, we already know some of the big names who have declared such as South Carolina DE Jadeveon Clowney, Louisville QB Teddy Bridgewater, Texas A&M QB Johnny Manziel and Auburn OT Greg Robinson.

Of the 90-some players expected to be on the final list, it's conceivable as many as 20, and maybe more, could be selected in the first round. That's how far the list of early entries goes beyond the top five.

The number of underclassmen who are drafted won't be anywhere near the number who declared. Of late, about two-thirds to three-quarters of the number of underclassmen who declare have actually been drafted.

Of the 73 underclassmen who declared last year, 52 (71.2%) were drafted. Of the 65 who declared in 2012, 44 were drafted (67.7%). And of the 56 who declared in '11, 43 were drafted (76.8%).

In 2013, the breakdown by round of the 52 who were selected went like this: 14 first round, 11 second, 10 third, 8 fourth, 5 fifth, 1 sixth, 3 seventh. The number of first-rounders this year should jump considerably in what would be an ordinary draft were it made up only of seniors.

The Packers have not hesitated to take underclassmen. Their record is mixed, however.

They did well last year with running back and offensive rookie of the year candidate Eddie Lacy (second) and starting LT tackle David Bakhtiari (fourth).

Picking at No. 21, the Packers should be able to address needs at safety, defensive line, tight end or linebacker, but they also might find themselves in position where the best player available is a cornerback, wide receiver or offensive lineman. At this point, the Packers need impact players and except for quarterback and running back it probably doesn't matter what the position.

Thompson needs to hit a home run this year, especially if he doesn't plan on taking part in free agency again. After getting almost nothing this past season out of his past two drafts (Mike Daniels was the exception) and facing the prospect of losing some quality free agents, the pressure is really on Thompson to upgrade the roster through this draft.

The Packers have all of their seven draft picks plus whatever compensatory picks they receive for their free agent net loss of WR Greg Jennings (five years, $45 million, $17.8 million guaranteed) and LB Erik Walden (four years, $16 million, $8 million guaranteed).

Here is a list of some of the top underclassmen in this year's draft, many of whom have a shot of being selected in the first round:

Jadeveon Clowney, DE, South Carolina

Johnny Manziel, QB, Texas A&M

Greg Robinson, OT, Auburn

Blake Bortles, QB, Central Florida

Sammy Watkins, WR, Clemson

Teddy Bridgewater, QB, Louisville

Kony Ealy, DE, Missouri

Cyrus Kouandijio, OT, Alabama

Marqise Lee, WR, USC

Haha Clinton-Dix, S, Alabama

Stephon, Tuitt, DE, Notre Dame

Jace Amaro, TE, Texas Tech

Austin Seferian-Jenkins, TE Washington

Calvin Pryor, FS, Louisville

Mike Evans, WR, Texas A&M

Louis Nix, DT, Notre Dame

Kelvin Benjamin, WR, Florida St.

Ryan Shazier, OLB, Ohio State

Eric Ebron, TE, NC

Timmy Jernigan, DT, Florida St.

About Tom Silverstein

Tom Silverstein has covered the Green Bay Packers since 1989. He is a two-time Wisconsin Sportswriter of the Year award winner.